Why do we ask people to sing on Sunday?

Seriously, why? I mean, lets look at it from someone else’s shoes, it’s a little strange that we invite people to a gathering and ask them to sing songs with us! Honestly, it’s kind of intimidating! Not the way to spend a weekend!

I know this is a bit offensive to a more traditional christian, but if we want to open our doors to people to EVERYONE...we have to see there World through there eyes!

So many years, I blindly led worship without asking myself this question! To be quite frank, it’s very easy to get caught up in what your doing, and forget about what’s going on! However, the truth is simple, the church HAS to relate to the world it’s trying to reach. Of course being in touch with God makes us different, it has to, but it shouldn’t make you weird. You know whats the fastest way to weirdness? Total isolation. Church people are NOTORIOUS for isolating themselves from the real world!

You know what my favorite thing to do is? I like walking. In fact, I like walking in public through really cool places, where there’s a ton a great people around. You know whats even more fun? Talking to those people. I love coffee shops, and I love turning my iPhone off, and talking to the barista when he or she isn’t busy! I’m kind of one of those people that like talking to freindly people! The best part about that is that getting to know these people is a great way for me to get to know who I SHOULD be playing music for! More importantly, I want them to experience God the same way I’ve experienced him, drowning in his undending LOVE!

So you want to know why I think we ask people to sing? I beleive that in order to experience God, you have to be Humbled, and trust me, singing songs about him is as humbling as it gets! I’ve said this before too, what makes Music so powerful is that it moves the sense that we take for granted the most: Our ability to Listen. Most importantly, when you sing in church, your singing with other people in the SAME situation, and the fact that your together in a room with these people is what makes church so great!

Why do we sing? Because God is worth singing about, and NOBODY who calls themselves Saved by grace could EVER be cool enough not to sing!

Bottom Line Theology

Want to know what makes me gag? Three word punchlines that accurately describe a lot of churches: seeker sensitive programs, numbers driven ministry, etc. Ok, there's the obvious attention grabber...what might be surprising is why I hate them.

It's not that I don't like larger churches. Let's be honest, "mega-churches" have more resources that can cater to a wealthier crowd. That crowd needs to be plugged into a body of believers just as much as the needy or even middle class. And let's face it, whether you like it or not, most mega churches make the body of christ a stronger body.

Its not that there's anything wrong with a "leadership pipeline" or a "pathway program". Those systems when used correctly make it very simple for people to get involved with the church!

Here it is: it's the fact the ALL OF US at one point or another can get caught up in everything we are DOING for the church, that we forget WHY we do it.

The truth still stands: GOD IS STILL GOD...if he wanted to build the body without us...he easily could!

He could use the church of 10 people to make Disciples of the ENTIRE population of the planet, and he can use the church of 10,000 to feed the needs of a homeless family!

What is disgusting is when our lack of finances and numbers start to give us heartburn! God can still use his bride as long as she is still after him, even if she's broke!

That's why we sing songs on Sunday. It's not a ritual, or a routine, it's a chance to recognize on a weekly basis that no matter if we do everything right or wrong, NO ONE who is saved is above the Love of God, and that's why EVERYONE needs to worship him!

If you can't get through a worship set without taking your mind off your own challenges, it's a good sign that it's time to let go and realize that God doesn't care about your challenges. God cares about a relationship with you and all the people you are trying to reach, an his Love is FAR GREATER than our stupid challenges!

-David

PS. I'm guilty of ALL of this! This was written out of the frustration that I felt self evaluating myself and realizing what I've allowed myself to become!

From the heart of a Musician

You know one thing that’s nice about sitting on a plane for four hours, is that it forces you to sit down, not do anything and think. Well, here I am on my window seat 26A, perousing through my iTunes library, and I decide to do this one thing. I listen to the Fred Hammond and Israel Houghton records that I first got into when I first started playing worship music. When you listen beyond the AMAZING chops that musicians have on those records, you will find soulful songs that bleed honesty, and I find that to be courageous writing.

After listening through those tracks, I moved on to the first New Life Record that I had the honor of playing on (Counting on God). I realized how those black gospel records had a heavy influence on me, and how that soulful artistry came through in my playing. I moved on to other records that I played on, and I realized something, that artistry had slowly been suffocating!

This week, I flew to Colorado Springs to record a record that Jared Anderson was producing, and to be quite honest, I really didn’t get the chance to be in the right mindset to record. Honestly, I came to the table with stale, overused ideas that I have always felt comfortable with that had worked in the past. When you lean on the same ideas and habits musically, your comfort increases, but your creativity dies, and when your creativity dies, your souls stops receiving oxygen, so you become a comfortable cadaver. Over the week, I didn’t play horrible, but at the same time, I couldn’t really offer anything that blew me away personally because my soul wasn’t breathing into these ideas.

Our engineer, Mike Rossback said something to me during the week that crushed me, “if we’re here recording and doing music, why not make it the most amazing thing we’ve ever made”. Wow...to be honest, I responded to that statement with a little bitterness, because it meant I had to get out of the comfort zone, and create a bit of a new identity. What’s funny is that wasn’t Mike’s intent at all, but it was exactly what I needed to hear! Over the course of the week, it felt like musical bootcamp for me.

So, as this experience comes to a close, I’m sitting on this plane not looking back on the past week, but reevaluating what the heck happened to my oxygen starved soul! That’s why I’m digging through my iTunes library, and listening back to the music that inspired me to become a better musician. I’ve got to say, it’s been extremely healthy to look back on the past!

Is there some sort of lesson in this? Not really, I’m just putting my thoughts out there just because it makes me feel better, and if you read this and get to know me better, than yes, posting this was worth it for me!

Needs

Ive been getting really overwhelmed with needs lately. Whether there my needs, someone elses needs, or just the needs of life. What I’ve come to realize is that needs are just a part of life.

However, there is something that every need, and ever person has in common: they all have to bow to the Name of Jesus!

No matter how overwhelmed you are, God is STILL God and he’s STILL worthy of our full attention. No matter what you’ve done, no matter who much crap you’ve piled up, God is still wants you just the way you are!

Think about that when you feel overwhelmed!

Galations 1:10

What Cynical People Want

Food for Thought: When someone is accusing someone else of a crime, Whats the one thing that superceeds any testimony, alibi, or argument? EVIDENCE.

Let me paint a picture of what SOME christians look like through the eyes of a cynical non-christian.

“Man, he’s alot different at church than he is in the workplace”

“He’s nice, but I don’t sense anything genuine under her skin”

“He’s quoting Bible verse’s, but I’m not convinced that he’s aware of the words he is saying”

“What a legalisric weirdo!”

You know why I can quote those lines? Because those were comments direcred toward ME at one point! You see, I was “doing” christian things, but all those “things” really are are testimonie’s, alibi’s, secondhand accounts and empty arguments that fall flat on the ground. You know what “things” do for a cynical person? They ADD to there doubts!

HERE’S THE TRUTH

LOVE is the heartbeat of GENUINE Christianity, and SACRIFICE is the EVIDENCE of LOVE.

Show me someone that doesn’t sacrifice for there spouse, I’ll show you a broken marriage. Show me a person who doesn’t MAKE time for freinds, and I’ll show you someone who’s alone. Show me a person who CALLS themselves a christian and doesn’t make time, give money, OR show compassion to the people that are around him, and I’ll show you someone who TRULY doesn’t see and understand the sacrifice Jesus made for them, therefore doesn’t understand the meaning of being a christian, which is beleif in the Sacrifice of Jesus.

Therefore, he ISN’T a christian!

The american idea is to serve your own wants, fulfill your own needs, but to be a Christian is to set whats good for you, and wash the feet of others.

So I’ll say it again: SACRIFICE is the EVIDENCE of LOVE.

Present the evidence, and NO cynic will question your Belief!

Why I CHOOSE to play Christian Music....

Ok, so it’s no secret to a lot of you guys I don’t enjoy playing Christian Music that much. Even more so, I really don’t enjoy the politics that are associated with Christian music. Ok, I’ll be honest: I HATE it. I don’t like the fact that my generation hates it and so in order for Christian music to be relevant, it has to cater to generations ten or twenty years before my time. Honestly, I personally enjoy playing my instrumental music the most because it’s something a lot of people don’t listen too, and because of that, it’s music I play to stimulate my own senses. I guess you can call it my vacation from Christian Music. HOWEVER, I’m not ranting, I’m simply stating the facts!

So why the heck do I choose to keep playing music that I don’t like? The answer is simple.

The funny thing about God, is that he can work through anything I do, as long as I do it. I never understood how that worked until a young teenager came up to me after a worship service and told me how he was thinking about suicide, but during the worship set, he felt something he never felt in a long time, hope. He thanked us for saving his life. In another sunday morning, a couple wanted me to give there kids piano lessons. A couple months later, they opened up to me and told me how they were on the brink of splitting. However, watching there kids try to learn music gave them something keep the marriage going and eventually it was worth fighting for. I have countless other stories I can tell you just like that, but I wouldn’t stop typing. I’m actually kind of getting emotional typing this up.

Everybody wants to be the next “American Idol” or “Guitar Hero”, and soak up all this attention for themselves. That’s all fun, but that’s not for me. I’m so tired of chasing five minutes of fame. Why do that when you can give others something that will last? A Grammy is a piece of metal that sits on the shelf, but something like a Marriage is something that affects you and your kids for a lifetime. Do you see what I’m saying?

So the reason I’m writing this is for one purpose. I know a lot of you guys play in churches because I get hundreds of messages asking me to encourage you in what your doing. When you play, you have NO idea what impact you have on other people. So don’t give up on it just because you think the music sucks. This doesn’t just apply to Musicians either, this message was really for EVERYBODY.

This is it, this is why I CHOOSE to play worship music. Read II Timothy 2:15
~dl

PS
Thank you Pastor Ross, Matthew, Jeremiah, Jared, Jon, Glenn, and everyone else at New Life for giving me the opportunity to do What I do. Ryan and Joshua, thank you as well!

The Church and the People it Hurts

Ok, this is a VERY touchy subject, and I know just about ALL of you guys have experience with this.

Over the past six months, no matter where I’ve been whether its the church I work at, my former churches, or a church I’m visiting, I’ve noticed an AWFUL a lot of hurt people approaching me. The fact is, I know EXACTLY why they approach me. When I play music, I tend to wear my feelings on my sleeve. In the past, I’ve been burned by people in church before, and that tends to lead to a visibly raw performance when I play worship.

As I’m typing this, I know I don’t have ALL the right answers, but I WILL NOT hide the fact that I’ve been burned by church’s in EVERY single way imaginable! The reason why I won’t hide that, is because I also don’t hide the fact that I still LOVE the church no matter what I’ve been through, and I NEVER allow ANY excuse to change that.

So in this particular blog entry, I’m going to be VERY direct, and VERY honest, but if you finish reading this, I promise it’ll be worth it.


I want to address three different types of people in this blog: People that have been hurt, people who intentionally hurt people and people who unknowingly have hurt people. I can definitely say I’ve been on EVERY sides of this coin.

For those that KNOWINGLY do the hurting:
I know a lot of friends and pastors that will agree with me on this. In my experience in the ministry, there’s not a lot of things you can do to push away the Grace of God. However, one sure way to push God’s Grace away is to push the people he sends in your life away. Not only do we have a calling in life, but NONE of us can do that calling alone.

Whether you like it or not, GOD usually provides the people you NEED, not the people you HAVE IN MIND. The key to success in the christian life is ALL ABOUT PEOPLE...PERIOD. Love is not an option for us, it is a requirement! We have to willing to clean each other’s messes REGARDLESS of what YOU FEEL THERE SHORTCOMINGS are. Besides, we’re not the judge of people, God is. Let God be the judge, all we should focus on is using the people in our lives.

For those that UNKNOWINGLY do the hurting:
This is the category I tend to be in! First off, lets make it clear: it’s IMPOSSIBLE to make everyone happy in life! There are just SO many people from SO many backgrounds that SOME people are not going to be able to work with you. Does this mean we should avoid these people? Absolutely not. The hardest part of life is working with people you don’t like, but it’s required of us.

My personal story is the life of the “people pleaser”. Growing up I wasn’t friendly in order to make people happy, I NEEDED people to like me! It was an addiction for me! If ANYONE didn’t like me, I had a HARD time dealing with it! What ended up happening to me was that people walked all over me, and when things got out of hand, I started getting upset at people. When I started getting upset at people, people stopped liking me, and so I ended up being at square one again.

Everything started changing for me when I decided to actually LOVE the people in my life, rather than feed on people liking me. When you actually love people, you start celebrating there victories, and mourning there loses. That’s the difference between being a people pleaser and someone who loves people.

For those that have been hurt:
This is tough. My pastor say’s it the best. “When people leave church, you don’t say “Whatever”, you should say “Wow, there hurting, and I hope they get healed wherever they go.”

I’ve been hurt by churches before, but beside’s the fact that this information is VERY confidential, but more importantly it DOESN’T MATTER! John Bevere is a forefront teacher on this, and one thing he says is that “The church disappoints the most people because everyone has this expectation that church people can’t let them down”. John’s absolutely right on this! The church is made up of people just like me and you!

I FORCED myself to make this confession:

I AM CASTING JUDGEMENT ON PEOPLE BASED ON MISTAKES THEY’VE MADE TOWARD ME, AND I NEED TO STOP.

If there’s one thing our society is pathetic at, it’s our need to keep score of things. If someone does something to us, we have to keep inventory of it and count it against them. It happens in marriages, in families, in jobs, and especially in church congregations. This is why people in church use the word Hypocrite so loosely, because they judges peoples characters by the failures and not there beleifs. I’ll repeat this, GOD judge’s character, NOT US. Don’t sit there and cast judgement, and just learn to work with them!

Bottom line: PEOPLE make mistakes. The church is no exception. If you spend your time judging people by there mistakes, you’ll constantly be let down. But if you learn to work with people despite there mistakes, you’ll start to see why God is using these people, and why he sent them into your life.


I Corinthians 13:12-13 (NIV)
Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

MOST IMPORTANTLY FOR EVERYONE:
Don’t take anything I’ve said the wrong way, my intent isn’t to discourage, but to encourage true growth. If you’ve hurt people, don’t ask for forgiveness, BEG for it. EVEN if you don’t understand what you did.

If you’ve been hurt, FORGIVE them! REALLY FORGIVE people that have hurt you! Nothing in life is worth staying mad about forever, so just forgive them. If you REALLY need to, make a phone call, talk to them in person! I did this before, and a funny thing happened, people started to look past my mistakes and shortcomings and see me for who God called me to be: a worshipper.

ASK FOR FORGIVENESS, FORGIVE PEOPLE. The imperfect person (hypocrite/coward/people pleaser) in you will fade away, and you’ll become who you’re CALLED to be.

"The last thing people need is another jaded christian, especially when most people respond to a redeemed sinner"